A radical scheme allowing families to buy houses without a mortgage or deposit could be launched in east Hull.
First developed to comply with debt-averse Islamic law, it lets occupiers purchase a home direct from the landowner by paying monthly installments over decades.
A project run by North East housing association Gentoo has already showed the system works.
Now, veteran city politician Lord Prescott would like to see it used for any new houses built on land near Preston Road.
He said: "We've got a housing shortage. Wages are low and increases in mortgages and house prices are making it ridiculous.
"People enter the market depending on their parents. This is a possible alternative and we have the land – all we need to do is bring it together."
Scores of homes in Hull are being demolished by the city council as part of a major regeneration programme.
Hull City Council housing portfolio holder John Black has said he would ask developers working alongside the city council to look into Lord Prescott's idea.
He said: "I think it's commendable people are looking at all these things.
"Clearly, we've got to find a solution to this housing problem.
"I think it's something we've got to do. If you're working full-time and working hard and you still can't afford to buy a house, it's clearly not acceptable to just leave it at that."
Although many families still struggle to get on the ladder, property prices in Hull remain lower than in many other cities.
Earlier this month, a study by the TUC revealed average prices are less than four times the average income in the city – the only place in Yorkshire where the ratio is so low. For Cllr Black, that is still not good enough.
He said: "Despite Hull's low house prices, wages are commensurately lower and many people can't afford a property if they have to provide a 10 per cent deposit as well as getting a mortgage.
"Any ideas that can reduce or remove those barriers, any ideas which appear to be innovative and able to make it work for people striving to be owner-occupiers, have got to be worthy of examination.
"I'm more than willing to look at this system and see how the council can help."
The Gentoo system, called Genie, has been running in Sunderland for several years.
It sees the company buy new-build houses from developers before advertising them on the market.
When an owner moves in, they pay Gentoo every month.
The scheme grew out of a financial instrument designed for Muslim buyers, who are discouraged from getting into debt.
Ben and Lucy Watson, who live in a development in the Doxford Park area of Sunderland, said it turned their distant dream of home ownership into a reality.
Mr Watson, a 39-year-old IT worker, said: "We were renting and struggling to get a deposit for a mortgage."
He and his wife have two young children and moved into a four-bedroom house with a garden in 2012.
They pay £983 a month for the £180,000 home and did not need a mortgage.
Lord Prescott said: "This allows families to buy without the stamp duty, without the mortgage, and have the house now.
"It would be very sensible to bring this scheme to Hull."
There are already some efforts to help get first-time buyers on the property ladder.
The Government's flagship mortgage initiative Help to Buy allows new owners to borrow with a smaller deposit.
The maximum amount needed under the programme is 5 per cent of the total value of a house.
Banks normally want a deposit of at least 10 per cent.
Kingswood, where developers including Barratt Homes and Persimmon Homes are building hundreds of houses, is a Help to Buy hotspot.
At least 143 people have used the scheme in the area since its launch, according to a national newspaper – more than anywhere else in the country.
Cllr Black believes it goes some way to addressing the issue. However, he is convinced more must still be done.
He said: "People have got to find solutions to fit the current circumstances.
"The proof is in the pudding and if people find these kinds of schemes attractive, they could make a difference."
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